Roland VP-330
| VP-330 | |
|---|---|
A Roland VP-330 Vocoder Plus | |
| Manufacturer | Roland Corporation |
| Dates | 1979-1980 |
| Price | US$2,695 equivalent to $11,676 in 2024 |
| Technical specifications | |
| Polyphony | Paraphonic |
| Oscillator | Single master VCO divided into full note range |
| LFO | Sine wave |
| Synthesis type | Analog subtractive |
| Filter | 7 band-pass for human voice tones; 10 band-pass for vocoder |
| Attenuator | Single attack and release shared by all voices |
| Aftertouch expression | No |
| Velocity expression | No |
| Effects | 2 parallel BBDs per channel (4 BBDs total) for stereo ensemble effect |
| Input/output | |
| Keyboard | 49 keys |
| Left-hand control | Pitch bend |
| External control | Vocoder hold via foot switch |
The Roland VP-330 is a paraphonic ten-band vocoder and string machine manufactured by Roland Corporation from 1979 to 1980. While there are several string machines and vocoders, a single device combining the two is rare, despite the advantage of paraphonic vocoding, and the VP-330's synthetic choir sounds are unique. Despite the VP-330's electronic string and choir sounds being less realistic than those of the tape-based Mellotron, touring musicians used it as a lighter and more robust alternative.
The Roland SVC-350 is a similar vocoder in rack-mount form designed to accept external inputs.